Maze
Medieval Ruler: Prince Willis Bree, controlled by Madame. The home to many Rodent and possessor of little. These lands have the weakest army and influence of all of the seven countries. The animals of this country are often taken advantage of by other countries, and whence the animals of Maze travel to other lands for better lives, they are often put to harsh work in the fields as indentured servants. Religion About 60% of the Mazan population has membership in the Trinidian Church, a monotheistic religion that recognizes Dios as the Creator. Dios is a single god with three ‘god heads’, hence the Holy Trinity. This is Mixcoatl, the Father, Quetzalcoatl, the Son, and Tonatiuh, the Holy Spirit. In artwork, Mixcoatl comes in a variety of species, colorations and sizes, but the officially recognized representation (immortalized in a grand mosaic in the Central Hall of Santo Ve) is that of a tall, white, aged mouse with a long beard reaching to his abdomen, dressed in traditional Abbot robes -- entirely white robes, decorated with holy designs in silver thread and a small white hat -- with the white staff of the Paladin in one paw to represent that side of the Order and an olive branch in the other to represent the Monk and Sister. Quetzalcoatl is also a mouse, though his fur is a rich mahogany color and his own beard is short, shown to wear either the garb of the Paladin or the habit of the Monks depending on the painter. Tonatiuh is most often depicted as a pillar of flame by the Paladin artists and a beast-dove by the Monks. History The Great King and the Lizards King Durango was the first of the mouse royal line in Maze and lived around 200 years ago. He is touted as the greatest of all the heroes of Maze and the Mazan Festival is held in his honor every year. It is said that the King, with only a ragtag army, was able to take out the invading reptilian hordes from Kahun and keep the continent ‘free’. Division With only 60% of the population belonging to the Trinidian Church and the Church having strong views on ‘infidels’, there is quite a bit of religious unrest in the country. Other groups include those who still follow the Old Faith and believe Quetzalcoatl to be a great prophet, but not the son of Mixcoatl, those who follow the ancient nature and element-based beliefs, such as the Romani and still others who believe in multiple gods. Tampico Occurring just seven years ago in a medium-sized town in north-west Maze, the town of Tampico and every soul who didn't manage to escape, was destroyed by a regiment of Paladins. Led by the ambitious Noble Marco Lorenz, 100 priests and priestesses (many young and inexperienced) were sent to deal with what was supposed to be a small entourage of Romani in the town who were supposedly stirring up disbelief in the town. Upon arrival, the Paladins were met by a group of no more than twelve Romani who seemed peaceful enough. Noble Lorenz met with them in the streets, but before talks could begin, a bright light lit the sky and when everyone could see again, a priest was dead from what looked to be a Romani Earth binding spell. Infierno broke forth and what was only supposed to involve the infidel Romani turned into a full-fledged massacre as the fleeing furs hid within the houses of the regular population. At the end of it all, only four priests were dead while the Romani and what was thought to be the entire population of Tampico were wiped out. Everything was hushed up, but rumors spread from a few who did manage to escape and many traumatized priests and priestesses who could not keep their mouths shut. Tampico became known as the Bloody Friday, though Lorenz was honored as a hero along with every Paladin that had been there that day. Mythology The Curse Stones The curse stones are a carry over from pagan traditions that are used in some Trinidian monasteries. Generally located in the graveyards around the monasteries on raised rectangular slabs of rocks, several spherical stones may be turned counter clockwise to curse ones enemies. Lake Esperanza The largest lake in Maze, located almost in the exact center of the continent, is ripe with legend. The story goes that hundreds of years ago, Princess Esperanza was walking about the jungle in a valley when she met two warrior companions eating near their fire. Seeing her wondrous beauty, each fur did his best to impress her until they fell to arguing with one another about who should court her. Their quarrel became physical and they killed each other. Thinking it was her fault, Esperanza began to cry and cry and cry until her tears filled the valley and she drowned in the waters that held such bitter regret. Luna’s Island Luna Peron was said to have live on an insignificant island in Lake Esperanza near Quito where the River Azul fed into it. She was a hermit porcupine who would row into Quito every Friday to collect a small amount of gold from a mysterious hedgehog who only appeared for that day every week, before buying supplies. One Friday she did not show up, nor did the hedgehog and a few interested furs rowed out to make sure the old crazy was alright. They found her hut burnt down, though no body could be found in the rubble and everyone assumed the worst. As the furs were leaving, so the tale goes, one felt a tug on his sleeve and looked round to find no one there. The lad continued to his boat and once again felt the tug. This time he turned full around and was greeted by a bristling lady porcupine, her cooking apron still on. His companions didn’t seem to notice her and the fur fled, gibbering nonsense, when the manically grinning figment began to reach for his sleeve again. To this day, the residents of Quito and those furs inhabiting the area around Lake Esperanza have stayed clear of Luna’s Island, for it’s said that if one steps foot on it, he’ll go mad from the touch of the old spirit that still lurks there. References *Mazan Culture Thread on the Feila Forums *The Royalties on Feila Universe Category:Places